Unit 1 World Literature Latin and Central America

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Unit 1 World Literature: Latin and Central America



Overview:

  • Students consider religious, generational, and cultural conflicts as well as the impact of modernization and political struggles, among other themes common to many literary works. Students also recognize how not all literary works make explicit political or cultural statements and must be approached on their own terms. In order to enrich their understanding, students investigate the historical and cultural background for selected works, as well as read pertinent author biographies.

Focus Standards:

  • RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
  • RL.9-10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
  • RL.9-10.6: Analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.
  • RI.9-10.5: Analyze in detail how an author’s ideas or claims are developed and refined by particular sentences, paragraphs, or larger portions of a text (e.g., a section or chapter).
  • RI.9-10.8: Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.
  • W.9-10.4: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
  • W.9-10.5: Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1–3 up to and including grades 9–10 on page 54.)
  • W.9-10.6: Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information and to display information flexibly and dynamically.
  • W.9-10.9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
  • SL.9-10.6: Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 9–10 Language standards 1 and 3 on pages 54 for specific expectations.)
  • L.9-10.5: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
  • L.9-10.6: Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.

Suggested Student Objectives:

  • Explore the role of the magical and fantastic in Latin American literature.
  • Explore narrative forms and techniques in Latin American literature.
  • Analyze the role of time in Latin American narrative.
  • Listen to and analyze Latin American poetry in the original and in translation.
  • Explore the role of local and universal themes in Latin American literature.
  • Consider the challenges of translation, including the different connotations that various cultures attach to given words.
  • Offer insightful inferences regarding the themes of the text.
  • Create clear, original, specific thesis statements.
  • Organize concrete evidence and supporting textual details to support a thesis statement.
  • Use precise language, avoiding casual language and clichés.
  • Write appropriate transitions to organize paragraphs.
  • Analyze how literary devices produce meaning.

Suggested Texts:

Novels:

Short Fiction:
Poetry:
  • “Book of Twilight” (Pablo Neruda) - Chile
  • Gabriela Mistral: A Reader - selections (Gabriela Mistral, Maria Giachetti, trans., Marjorie Agosin, ed.) - Chile
  • Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair - selections (Pablo Neruda and W.S. Merwin, trans.) - Chile
  • Eagle or Sun? (prose poems) - selections (Octavio Paz) - Mexico
Non-Fiction: